


into the dark

by marshie_marshmallow



Series: the crimson flower blooms [3]
Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: F/F, Nonbinary My Unit | Byleth, and the relationships that develop, depending on how much any given character actually factors into the scenes, i may add or remove tags later
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-01
Updated: 2020-01-14
Packaged: 2021-02-27 10:20:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,971
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22065403
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/marshie_marshmallow/pseuds/marshie_marshmallow
Summary: Ser Ingrid of the Adrestian Empire left her homeland of Faerghus behind. Now she serves Emperor Edelgard in the creation of a new and better world.Though the war has ended, a hidden enemy remains. The alliance between the Empire and Those Who Slither in the Dark ended with the conquering of Faerghus. Now they turn their blades on each other to determine who will take Fodlan, once and for all.
Relationships: Dorothea Arnault/Ingrid Brandl Galatea, Ingrid Brandl Galatea & Fleche von Bergliez, Ingrid Brandl Galatea & Hubert von Vestra
Series: the crimson flower blooms [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1549636
Comments: 2
Kudos: 25





	1. Prologue: Harpstring Moon, 1186

**Author's Note:**

> we're here with an ingrid fic! yes, this one is multi-chap. i'm anticipating seven or eight chapters but who can say for sure? certainly not me. yes, the actual chapters beyond the prologue will be significantly longer than this.

“That's awful.”

Ingrid absentmindedly stirred her tea while her face rested on one hand. “Yeah... Never in all my years would I have imagined the Church of Seiros would set a city full of civilians on fire, least of all while they were still inside. And for the Kingdom soldiers to just... let it happen? Not even bother trying to save all those civilians? Then again, I suppose they were trapped in there too. They must have hoped to end the battle quickly so they _could_ get people out.”

“Unforgivable,” Fleche muttered. “But they were still defending the Church after that? Did they think the Imperial Army was a more important enemy than the one that betrayed them and set their capital on fire?”

“I don't know... I get the feeling they weren't defending the Church... but there was no king for them to be defending, either.” Ingrid sighed. “We evacuated as many civilians as we could but... that was a very small amount when one considers what the actual population of Fhirdiad was. The real problem is finding all the bodies... seeing if anyone can identify and lay claim to them... There are going to be so many who go unrecognized. Innocent civilians killed by the Church's betrayal, whose families may never learn what became of them.”

Fleche bit her lip. “That's terrible... What about anything else? Have there been... any other issues?”

“Subduing Gautier territory but the Margrave can't put up a fight for much longer. He's surrounded on all sides and he doesn't even have the Lance of Ruin anymore. It would be simpler if he would just surrender but he's shown no signs of trying to stand down. I suppose he simply refuses to kneel to anyone other than House Blaiddyd.”

“That's the guy who disowned his son for being Crestless, right?” Fleche scowled when she nodded in confirmation. “So he's _exactly_ the kind of person Her Majesty is trying to get rid of.”

“Yeah. The world will probably be a better place with him gone...” Ingrid trailed off as she sipped her tea. “Hm... Now, that I think of it... What became of Areadbhar and the Lance of Ruin?”

“What?”

“I was just... Maybe the Imperial Army took the Relics? I know Jeritza took the Relic that Mercedes was carrying, as they have the same Crest but Areadbhar and the Lance of Ruin... Well, I'm sure it's not too important. Her Majesty probably knows where they are. Maybe she has plans for them.”

“Oh, sure! Probably.” Fleche drained the last of her tea and reached for the pot to refill her cup. “So now what are you gonna do?”

“Well, the entire Black Eagle Strike Force, for now, is under orders to recuperate and not overexert themselves. Even Her Majesty. After that... I intend to do whatever Her Majesty needs of me.”


	2. Garland Moon, 1186

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so, don't expect any more updates for a little bit. i'm trying to do edelthea week AND dimilix week AND felix week and maybe even cysithea week and every single one of those takes place entirely within february. so i have a lot of oneshots to write in a very short span of time.
> 
> that said, at least one of the felix week prompts is planned to take place within cfb. so, assuming i finish it, be on the lookout for that!

Ingrid was not having a good day.

Following the discovery that she had gone behind his back to get him barred from the training grounds, Felix had decided to come and yell at her. Something about not needing her to treat him like a child, which she was doing because he'd been  _ acting _ like a child. The lack of care he had for his own well-being was nothing short of astonishing. She had told him as much, comparing it to their childhood when he would try to do things, like play with her and Dimitri and Sylvain, despite being ill.

That had struck some sort of nerve, it seemed, because he just walked away fuming.

Honestly, though, he needed her babying him if he was going to act the way he was. As much as he'd try to deny it, the war had been harder on him than most but that didn't mean he should start acting so recklessly. Ignoring the healer's orders, training until he collapsed, and it looked like he hadn't had a good night's sleep in  _ weeks _ . She was concerned that he was going to work himself to death, so she had taken steps to ensure that he wouldn't. And what did she get for her troubles? She got yelled at and then given the silent treatment.

Now she sat on the steps outside the dining hall, munching on some jerky she'd picked up from a vendor. The area around the fishing pond was relatively empty for the time of day, which she was fine with. She didn't feel like dealing with a crowd at the moment.

Shoes clacked on the stone behind her, approaching from the dining hall. “Ingrid! There you are!”

She swallowed her mouthful of jerky and twisted around. “Hello, Dorothea.”

“Can I join you?”

She looked back at the pond. “Go ahead.” She tore off another bit of jerky with her teeth.

Dorothea walked down the steps and sat down on the same one as Ingrid. They were definitely blocking the way but neither of them cared. “I've heard about what happened earlier.”

“Mm,” she muttered around her mouthful. “Word travels fast.”

“Yes, well... the fight was rather public. How are you holding up?”

Another swallow. “I'm fine. If he wants to act like a petulant child or get himself killed, who am I to stop him? He's always been something of an idiot. He'll come around eventually.”

Dorothea put a hand on her shoulder. “Yes but that gives him no right to treat you like that.”

“I'm- Honestly, I'm not sure what his problem is. He's been acting weird for... a long time now. On the battlefield, he sometimes seems more like a wild animal than a man.” Funny. Wasn't that the same sort of thing he used to say about Dimitri? “He just... needs to get used to the fact that we're at peace now. That's all it is. We've been at war too long. He needs an adjustment period.”

“... If you're sure.” Dorothea didn't sound very convinced. “And what will you be doing while you wait for him to come around?”

“Serving Lady Edelgard. There's much to be done to establish true peace and equality in Fodlan. Her Majesty will need my help.”

“I see. I wish you and Edie luck with that, then. Personally, I've had enough fighting for my life.”

“So what do you plan to do, then?”

“I intend to return to Enbarr. Maybe gather up the opera troupe and work with putting it back together.”

“Will you go back to performing?”

“Hm... perhaps. I haven't thought about it much but... it sounds nice, being back on the stage. I only really took a  _ hiatus _ to attend the Officer's Academy but then... well, you know.”

“When do you leave?”

“The end of the month. I should be back in Enbarr by the middle of Blue Sea Moon.”

Ingrid set a hand over Dorothea's, running her thumb over the ring she had gifted her years ago. “Write to me when you get there?

“Of course.” Dorothea placed her head on Ingrid's shoulder.

Ingrid furrowed her brow, feeling the heat rising to her cheeks.  _ This _ was a bit more intimate than they usually got. It was probably just Dorothea being clingy before they went their separate ways but it was still a bit awkward. Nonetheless, Ingrid slowly leaned her own head over to rest on top of Dorothea's.

Goddess, she really hoped no one came along and saw them.

* * *

“Are you sure about this?” Edelgard asked.

“I believe it's too late to back out, Your Majesty,” Ingrid replied.

“Nonsense. It's never too late if you wish to do so.”

Her mouth quirked. “That's the thing, Your Majesty. I don't wish to do so.”

They were standing in the audience chamber. It would have been the chapel but it was still in such a state of disrepair. They weren't alone, though. Around them stood Hubert, Byleth, Ferdinand, Fleche, Caspar, and Dorothea. Ashe would have been there, too, had he not already left the garrison. It was a much smaller crowd than one that would have attended such events in Faerghus but it was enough for her, though Felix's absence stung more than she cared to admit.

“Then kneel,” Edelgard said, drawing the sword sheathed at her hip.

Ingrid obliged, settling herself in front of the emperor.

“Ingrid, who has left her family name behind, do you swear to by all that you hold sacred and true that you will defend the Empire and its crown, regardless of who might wear it?”

The oaths had been written up hastily, cobbled together from various examples in books. The Empire had no proper script for this sort of event. Nonetheless, Ingrid answered firmly. “I do.”

“That you will honor, defend, and protect those that can not protect themselves?”

“I do.”

“That you will raise your sword only for just cause and do all that you do for the betterment of Fodlan?”

“I swear by the blood that runs in my veins that I will serve the Empire until my last breath, no matter who may sit upon the throne. I will battle only for the sake of others, to protect and defend the Empire and its people, and I will never turn to darkness.”

“Then, having sworn these oaths, I, Edelgard von Hresvelg, Emperor of Adrestia, do dub you with this blade and by all that you hold sacred and true.” She tapped the blade once on each of Ingrid's shoulders and resheathed it. “Arise, Ser Ingrid, knight of the Empire.”

Ingrid slowly stood up to look the emperor in the eyes. Edelgard held out her hand and she took within her own. A moment passed before she brought it to her lips and lightly kissed the knuckles.

“I swear myself to you, my emperor, from this moment and until time ends.”

Edelgard nodded, withdrawing her hand. “I accept your fealty and swear the honor and protect the trust that you have placed in me.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty.” Ingrid crossed her arm over her chest and bowed.

Edelgard nodded. “It's clear that this was important to you. I know it's nowhere as grand an affair as the type of knighting you've always imagined but-”

“It's enough, Your Majesty. The ceremony's only a small part of knighthood, after all.”

She smiled. “True enough. I do have a task for you, now that you're officially knighted. However, it will have to wait until later. I still have preparations to make. With that, I must return to my duties. Farewell.”

A simple nod of acknowledgment and Edelgard was gone out the door, with Hubert right on her heels.

The ceremony had been far hastier and informal than the ones she had always dreamed of but those dreams had been left behind years ago. That there was a ceremony at all had only been because Edelgard recognized its personal importance to her. After all, to the Empire, knights and common soldiers were the same thing. Edelgard, by her own admittance, had only ever seen a single Faerghus-style knighting ceremony and hadn't been all too impressed.

The other occupants of the room were slowly approaching her to say their own pieces about her new knighthood.

“I'm happy for you,” Byleth said, placing a hand on her shoulder. Despite the words of congratulations, their voice was quiet. “Truly.”

“Thank you, Professor. For your words and all that you have done to teach me.”

They glanced away, then turned silently and left the room.

They had been acting strangely since the battle of Fhirdiad and Ingrid couldn't place why. Something to do with losing the goddess' power, she supposed.

“Congrats, Ingrid!” Caspar said, slapping her on the back with enough force to make her stumble.

“Caspar!  _ Honestly! _ ” Ferdinand scolded. “Be more gentle.”

“Aw, she can take it! She's a knight now, isn't she?”

“I just mean that it's only polite to-”

“It's fine, Ferdinand,” she said as she straightened herself out. “Thank you, Caspar. I honestly didn't expect you to watch.”

“Eh, I wanted to see what the big deal was. I was expecting more.”

“That's because it was hardly a traditional ceremony,” Ferdinand said. “An actual knighting ceremony was a much grander event.”

“Have you attended one before, Ferdinand?” she asked.

“No, but I do plenty of reading. I know generally how it's supposed to happen... or...  _ was _ supposed to happen, I suppose.”

Right. Hers would probably be the last knighting ceremony ever held, as the Kingdom was gone. Even if the war had been fought for a good cause, something about that fact sat just a little funny in her stomach. From the look on his face, it was likely the same for Ferdinand.

“Well, it doesn't matter much,” she said. “There  _ was _ a ceremony and that's enough for me.”

“If that is all that you wanted, that is all that matters.” He shook his head. “I must return to my duties. There is much work to be done.”

“I'll see you later, then.”

“I should probably get going, too,” Caspar said. “I promised Linhardt I'd help him pack his stuff.”

As the two of them left, it was just Fleche and Dorothea that remained in the room.

“Well, Ingrid, how do you feel?” Dorothea asked.

“Like... myself?” She really felt no different than she had maybe an hour prior. Was it supposed to feel like that or was it simply because of how informal the ceremony had been? She wondered how Glenn had felt just after his ceremony, which had been a properly grand affair.

“Hm. Nothing special?”

“No, I suppose not.”

“This means you're, like, Her Majesty's personal guard or something, doesn't it?” Fleche asked.

“I'm Her Majesty's knight,” Ingrid replied. “I'll do whatever she needs me to do.”

“We should celebrate,” Dorothea said.

“What?”

“Knighting ceremonies are supposed to be big events right? You're supposed to celebrate the new knight or whatever?”

“I mean... yeah but-”

“Let's go get dinner or something! We should do something to mark the occasion!”

“I-I suppose.”

“Do you wanna come with us, Fleche?”

Fleche tilted her head. “Hm... Actually, I think I need to help Addie with something!”

She scurried off, bringing the room's occupants down to two. Ingrid felt like she had just been played somehow.

Dorothea held out a hand. “I suppose it will just be the two of us, then.”

Ingrid took the hand, lacing their fingers together. “I... suppose so.”

“I hope you're not disappointed at the prospect of only having me for company.”

She shook her head. “No, no. It'll be nice. It's been a while since we've spent time together with just the two of us.” Outside of trips to the sauna together, they were usually with other people.

“Come on then. I'll pay.”

“You don't have to-”

“We're  _ celebrating _ you, Ingrid. Let me do this for you. One dinner's not going to make a huge dent in my savings.”

“I- Okay.” She was reluctant to relent but the look on Dorothea's face was eager enough to make her allow someone else to do something for her for once.

Dorothea, now suddenly very excited, wasted no time in pulling her out the door of the chamber. As she was pulled down the halls towards the monastery's gate, Ingrid blankly thought that Dorothea was nothing short of  _ adorable _ when she got like this.

* * *

Ashe was gone to Brigid with Petra. Dorothea was preparing to return to Enbarr. Marianne had already left for Edmund territory. Ferdinand was busy with work. Felix still wasn't talking to her.

It seemed all of Ingrid's friends were parting ways now that the war was over. That was to be expected, of course. The war was  _ over _ . Everyone had their own lives to return to after they had finished fighting for said lives.

Still, she took what company she could get in the meantime.

“You're doing well,” she said to Fleche one afternoon in the training grounds. “You certainly fight better with a spear than I was at your stage. Of course, how well you do on foot doesn't necessarily translate to fighting well when mounted.”

“Yeah,” Fleche replied, leaning against one of the pillars and sinking down to the ground. “When can we start working on that, anyway?”

“Well, I would say soon but I don't see any reason for us to start something new right now. You're going back home soon, aren't you?” Ingrid fished a waterskin out of her bag and handed it over

“Just for a while. I need a break...” Fleche took the skin gratefully and poured a stream of water directly into her mouth.

“You've been working hard lately. I had Caspar come to me at one point and beg me to make sure you were sleeping decently.”

She swallowed. “It's not that I haven't been sleeping. It's just that I suddenly got a whole bunch more work on my plate after Randolph... He left a lot behind that I needed to sort out so I was more exhausted at the end of the day but still only getting the same amount of sleep... usually.”

“Usually.”

“... It's hard. Sometimes. To sleep. Like my brain is racing with all these...  _ thoughts _ ... and I can't make them stop. Mostly ever since Randolph died.”

Ingrid settled down on the ground next to her. “Losing someone dear to you is hard. Though... I never lost any siblings, precisely.”

“To death.”

“What?”

Fleche stared at her. “You haven't lost any siblings to  _ death _ , maybe. But you did lose them, didn't you?”

“That's- I suppose that's true. There's not going to be any repairing the relationship with my family. We just... could never see eye-to-eye.” She didn't like thinking about it. The last contact she had with her family had been some four years prior when it finally sunk in that they wouldn't be joining the Empire.

Fleche leaned against her shoulder. “Emperor Edelgard had his body sent back home, so he's buried in the family cemetery. Which is good. I'd rather he be buried there than here but... it means I haven't gotten to visit the grave yet.”

She ran a hand over the younger girl's hair. “Well, you'll be able to soon. I'm sure he'd be proud of how well you've been holding up.”

“I hope so.”

She wrapped her arm around Fleche’s shoulders and pulled her into a hug.

They sat like that for a while before a commotion broke out in front of the training grounds.

“Sounds like someone yelling,” Fleche said as she disentangled herself from Ingrid’s arms and stood up.

“I’ll check it out,” Ingrid said as she pulled herself to her feet. She already had a suspicion as to what the disturbance was, which she was proven right about.

She opened the training room doors to find Felix, who was arguing with the posted guard. His face was set in a scowl, which seemed to almost be his permanent expression as of late. The guard, for his part, was just repeating the lines about Felix not being allowed entrance without express permission.

Upon spotting her, his scowl deepened. Rather than continue harassing the poor guard, he turned and began walking away.

“Felix, wait!”

Felix didn’t reply or slow his pace. She jogged to catch up so she could follow alongside him as he walked the relatively short distance to his room.

“Felix, I know you’re mad at me but it really was for your own good! You’re my friend! I didn’t want you to do something to hurt yourself. I know you think I’m treating you like a child but your behavior lately is nothing short of downright concerning!

He ignored each and every word that came out of her mouth. He didn’t even glance over at her as he marched up the steps onto the dormitory walkway. She followed him to the doorway to his room as he walked in. She didn’t even get an opportunity to try to put a foot over the threshold before he slammed the door in her face. She could hear the lock click into place.

“... I just wanted to help,” she finished lamely.

The solid wood of the door provided no response. Ingrid hit it with her fist but it didn’t budge. Not that she expected it to.

“Felix, please. I just… I’m sorry. I  _ know _ I shouldn’t have gone behind your back but… You were scaring me.” She could feel tears pricking the corners of her eyes. “Just… Please. Open the door. Talk to me. We’re the only ones left and I  _ know _ that’s our own fault but I can’t… I don’t want to lose you, too.”

No response. He always had been too stubborn for his own good.

“Ingrid?”

She turned around to see Fleche standing below the walkway.

“Are you alright?”

She wiped her eyes. “... No. I’m not.”

“He doesn’t deserve to be your friend if he’s gonna treat you like that.”

“It’s fine. This is just… how he is.”

“Then maybe he’s not a very good person.”

Ingrid shook her head. “You wouldn’t understand. Just… let it be. Let’s call an end to today’s training. I think I need to go… be alone.”

She walked past Fleche and towards the stairs, as her room was still on the second floor. Once she was inside her own room, she locked the door and threw herself on the bed. She had feared for a while that she might lose Felix but she hadn’t imagined it would be like this. Hadn’t thought he’d cut her out of his life, forcing her to sit by and watch as he self-destructed.

She hated feeling this helpless.

* * *

“You look troubled.”

Ingrid looked up from her drink to find Hubert looming over her. “Is it that obvious?”

He slid into the corner booth next to her. “Well, you're not usually one for this type of venue. For you to be drinking alone in a tavern is-”

“Concerning? I know what my limits are, Hubert. I'm not gonna drink too much.”

“That's not why I'm concerned.”

“What? You care about my feelings?”

He frowned. “I'm not emotionless, you know. Nor do I lack empathy entirely.”

“Are you trying to ask me if I want to talk about it?”

“Do you?”

“... Maybe. I don’t know. Why are you here?”

He reached into his coat and pulled out a letter, handing it to her underneath the table. “Open it in private.”

She took it and slipped it into her pocket. “Must be important for  _ you _ to be playing the role of the delivery boy.”

“It is.”

“Was that all you needed or were you gonna order a drink or something?”

“No.” He leaned back in the booth. “Why the sudden decision to swear yourself to Lady Edelgard?”

“You doubt my intentions.”

“I didn’t say that. If you were a spy or double agent, it doubtless would have come out long ago,  _ before _ the Kingdom lost the war. I’m just curious.”

“Because I was never entirely sure of my decision until the final battle.” She stared at her tankard before taking a huge swig. Hubert was silent while she swallowed. “The Demonic Beasts… Setting Fhirdiad on fire…  _ Arianrhod. _ ”

“Ah… yes. Arianrhod.”

“After seeing all of that I just… how could I  _ not _ think we were the right side? The Church went so far to try to kill us that they didn’t care who else died along the way. And maybe the Kingdom was defending itself but they were sheltering the Church! They were standing in the way of justice!”

“I see. So you have come to fully understand why Her Majesty had to start this war.”

“I do. I can’t deny that I wish there had been another way but I know that there wasn’t.”

“Good. The more people understand how truly necessary these actions were to take, the easier it will become to restore Fodlan. Her Majesty would not have taken this course of action if she didn’t recognize that, in the end, it was the quickest way to change and, ironically, the one with the least death.”

“Mm.” She set the tankard down on the table and propped her chin on her hands. “I do have to ask… What will become of Galatea territory? I know I forfeited all claim to it and cut ties with my family but… I still grew up there. And it’s always been a poor region, in both wealth and soil. So part of me is still concerned about it.”

“That would depend firstly on how willing your family is to bend the knee to Her Majesty now that their Kingdom’s fallen.”

“I guess.”

He crossed his arms. “If you would like to ask Her Majesty about taking over the territory, that is an option.”

“No…” She folded her arms down to lay flat. “I have little interest in governance and I think the people would likely be more accepting of an actual Imperial governor than they would of  _ me _ , the traitor.”

Hubert leaned forward to put a hand on her bicep. “You did what you found to be necessary for Fodlan as a whole. It is their own fault if they can’t recognize that.”

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. “Yeah… Yeah, I know. I just… wish I could have gotten them to see reason.”

“But you did try. Their willful ignorance is on them and them alone.” He stood up. “I must return to my duties.”

He left the tavern without another word. Once Ingrid had finished her drink, she paid and left as well. She returned to the garrison and retreated to her room to open the envelope she had been given.

It seemed Her Majesty had a mission for her new knight.

* * *

Ingrid arrived at the war room door at seven o’clock sharp the evening after Dorothea left for Enbarr, as per the instructions on the note she had been given. Hubert was standing outside its door, arms crossed.

“Ah, you're here,” he said.

“I was told to come,” she replied.

He nodded “That you were. There are others to arrive as well. Go inside.”

She obliged and pushed open the door to the room. Inside, Edelgard was seated at the head of the war table, with Byleth taking the chair to her immediate left. Hanneman sat to Byleth’s left and Lysithea was sitting directly across from him. After a moment’s pause, Ingrid settled into the chair to Lysithea’s right.

After a minute or two, Shamir walked in, followed by Jeritza. Shamir took the seat to Hanneman’s left and Jeritza sat next to her. The last to arrive was Leonie, who sat in the chair to Ingrid’s right. With everyone inside, Hubert stepped inside, locked the door, and took his seat between Edelgard and Lysithea.

“I’m sure some of you, at least, are wondering for what purpose you’ve been called here,” Edelgard began.

“Something about a new job,” Shamir replied dryly.

“Yes. Some of you are aware to some extent of what this is about but I’m sure you’re confused.”

“Not confused. Just wanna know what I’m being paid to do.”

“I am,” Leonie said. “I’m confused.”

Edelgard took a deep breath. “It concerns a group that threatens Fodlan and has for quite some time. Until now, we’ve worked with them because we required their power to defeat our much larger shared enemy of the Church of Seiros. Now that the war is over and Fodlan is united, they’ll turn on us. They’ll do so quickly and without warning, so we must strike back just as quickly.”

“Why us, specifically?”

“Lysithea has prior experience with these people. Professor Hanneman’s research is vital to countering their technology and skill. Jeritza and Ingrid are both loyal to me and can be trusted. Shamir was brought on at Professor Byleth’s suggestion… And as for you, Leonie… I believe I’ve told you before that I never sanctioned the murder of Jeralt Eisner. That’s because this group is the one that was behind it, truly. Not the Empire.”

Leonie’s face contorted with anger as she slammed a fist down on the table. “You’re saying that these people, whoever they are, killed the captain?”

“That’s right,” Byleth said. “Kronya and Solon were both agents of theirs.”

“... Then keep talking.”

“We-” Hubert started.

“By which he means himself,” Byleth interrupted.

He shot her a glare. “ _ We _ refer to them as those who slither in the dark. They have been responsible for a number of events. This includes Remire Village, the Demonic Beasts at the chapel, and the murder of Sir Jeralt from our school days. They were the cause of that incident with the Demonic Beasts in the Sealed Forest a few months ago. They are also the ones responsible for the destruction of Arianrhod.”

Ingrid stood up, hands on the table, as her chair fell down behind her. “ _ What?  _ But I thought you said that was the Church of Seiros!”

“It’s true that Arianrhod was destroyed by those who slither in the dark,” Edelgard said as Ingrid scrambled to get her chair back in place and sit back down. “I lied about its cause because we did not need, at the time, to raise panic or suspicion by pointing out another enemy. Instead, pointing fingers at the Church raised army morale for the last stretch of the war.”

“Still a bit underhanded, don’t you think?” Lysithea asked. “I figured it wasn’t the Church that destroyed Arianrhod but everybody else took that as true. If they find out you lied to them about something so big… it won’t be a pretty sight.”

“I was against the cover story as well,” Byleth said. “But we’ll deal with the fallout of that lie coming to light when it does.”

“Does anyone have any further questions?” Edelgard asked.

Everyone glanced at each other but no one spoke.

“Very well, then. Is anyone opposed to taking part in the mission to destroy those who slither in the dark  _ before _ they can destroy us?”

“I’m in,” Byleth said.

“I’m in, too!” Lysithea said, crossing her arms.

Jeritza, Hanneman, and Shamir all nodded their assent. Ingrid glanced at Leonie before speaking.

“I’ll not turn away from the duty I have sworn myself to,” she said.

“And I’m not letting these guys get away after they killed the captain,” Leonie added.

“So nobody wishes to walk away from this?” Hubert asked. “... Good.”

“So what’s our first order of business?” Lysithea asked.

“First, we need to make sure we’re on the same page,” Byleth said. “These people have Heroes’ Relics in their hands. Freikugel, Failnaught, Areadbhar, Crusher, and the Lance of Ruin… All in the hands of the enemy and we can’t say for what purpose they were taken. We’ll need to be able to counter with force to match. Therefore, we need our own Relics, Sacred Weapons, and other weapons of relatively equal strength.”

“How many of those do we have?” Shamir asked.

“We have Aymr, Luin, the Rafail Gem, the Inexhaustible, the Axe of Ukonvasara, the Sword of Seiros, the Seiros Shield, the Arrow of Indra, and the Scythe of Sariel. Additionally, the Aegis Shield, Blutgang, Thyrsus, and Thunderbrand are in the hands of either us or our allies, which at least allows us to ensure they’re  _ not _ used against us. The Aegis Shield and Blutgang belong to Felix and Marianne respectively, Thyrsus is in the hands of House Gloucester, and Thunderbrand is here in the monastery but we lack anyone with the Crest of Charon who can effectively wield it.”

“I have the Crest of Charon,” Lysithea said.

“I said  _ effectively _ wield it. You’re a bit too lacking in upper body strength or sword training.”

Ingrid nodded along as she made a mental note of the list. “Wait,” she said. “What about the Sword of the Creator? You didn't list that one.”

Byleth shook their head. “When I lost the goddess' power, I lost the ability to wield the Sword of the Creator. Nobody else can wield it properly either. It's not  _ dangerous _ , since it doesn't have a Crest Stone, but it's also not... well... It's a sword. It's just... a sword.”

“And other Sacred Weapons?” Lysithea asked. “I know those are harder to keep track of but did... ‘those who slither in the dark’ take the rest of them, too?”

“As far as we know, they do not have any  _ Sacred _ Weapons,” Hubert said. “The Caduceus Staff, Spear of Assal, and Ochain Shield were all taken by Seteth and Flayn when they abandoned the Church. Any others are either being hidden from us or are well and truly missing.”

“Even the Sword of Moralta?” Ingrid asked. Some of the people at the table gave her questioning glances, so she elaborated. “It's a Fraldarius weapon. Glenn showed it to me once. I don't know who would have last had it but House Fraldarius is dead, so...”

Hubert raised an eyebrow. “We’ve found no such items in our search of Castle Fraldarius or any other fortresses within the area. As I said, it's possible it's been hidden from us. Perhaps House Fraldarius took measures to ensure it wouldn't fall into our hands since we had already taken both the Aegis Shield and their heir.”

“... Please don't phrase it like that. Felix  _ chose _ to join you. As did I.”

“Regardless,” Edelgard interrupted, “we’ll need to move quickly if we wish to win.”

“What’s our first step?” Leonie asked.

“Locate their base and conduct a raid on it.”

“That’s a pretty big first step.”

“Yes but it’s vital,” Hubert said. “I will be leading this group to the ruins of Arianrhod next month. We may be able to find something there to help us track it down.”

“How do you mean?” Shamir asked.

“The weapons used to destroy Arianrhod were almost certainly magical in nature,” Hanneman said. “It is possible that there is some magical trail we can follow back to their base.”

“Yes. Additionally, Cornelia was a member of those who slither in the dark and the dolls we fought at Arianrhod were weapons crafted by them. Even if we are unable to find a link back to their base, there may yet be something we can make use of.”

“Is there anything else we need to discuss?” Ingrid asked.

Edelgard shook her head. “Unfortunately, that’s about all the information we have right now.”

Ingrid got the sense that that was a lie and there was more info being kept from them. She could see Lysithea’s eyes dart to Edelgard, then to the table. Byleth, too, looked as if they were trying not to say something. Still, it wasn’t a knight’s place to question their superiors.

“Very well then.”

Edelgard stood up. “From now on, you are all under the direct command of Hubert and Professor Byleth. Does anyone object to this?”

Everyone shook their hands

She slammed her hand down on the table. “Then I mark this as the official formation of the Secret Order to Defeat Those Who Slither in the Dark!” She received many blank stares for that and blushed deeply. “The name is a work in progress. I’m going to come up with a better one.”

Byleth smirked as they stood up. “It took her an entire night to brainstorm ‘Black Eagle Strike Force.’”

“I didn’t- I never said it took me the whole night to come  _ up _ with it!” she objected as Byleth walked towards the door, face now bright red. “Professor!”

“Are we free to go now?” Shamir asked, not bothering to hide the amused smile on her face.

“... Please.”

“Great.”

With permission to leave and Byleth having already left, the rest of the group stood up to make their way out. In the doorway, Ingrid gave one last glance back to where Edelgard and Hubert stood before closing it behind her.

_ This _ was what she had been waiting for.

**Author's Note:**

> if y'all ever wanna chat, hmu on twitter @rnarshmallo


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